1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system for managing the fluid intake of a person. The system consists of multiple containers of various volumes, a common lid that fits all of the containers where the lid configured for the attachment of a removable flow control valve, multiple flow control valves having varying flow rates, a date indicator ring incorporated on the containers, a content indicator incorporated on the lid, a chiller insert, and an optional slip on handle. In the system, the user selects a container based on the fluid needs of a person (infant or infirm patient) and selects a flow control valve based on the drinking ability of the person. The user fills the container with a drinkable fluid, and indicates the nature of the contents with the content indicator and the date of filling with the date indicator ring. This allows subsequent identification of the type and age of the contents. The chiller insert allows the user to cool the contents without the possibility of dilution. The system also includes an optional slip on handle which allows the container to be easily held by a person with limited dexterity.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are numerous prior art spill proof drinking cups. These cups are designed to be used by very young children who have been weaned from a baby bottle or from breast feeding, but do not yet have the ability to drink from a standard cup without spilling. It is also common for these cups to be used by the infirm: people who have been injured and have reduced dexterity and the elderly with limited dexterity. These cups are often referred to as “sippy cups.” Standard sippy cups are a cup with a lid that has a spout that is designed to be held in the child's mouth. The spout generally has a small hole to prevent a rapid flow of liquid. This serves two purposes. First it prevents a rapid flow of liquid into the child's mouth while drinking, but it also prevents excess spilling of the contents of the cup and prevents a mess in the very common event that the child drops or knocks over the sippy cup. Examples of prior art spill proof cups are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,876,772; 3,967,748; 4,135,513; 4,836,404; 4,946,062; 5,050,758; 5,079,013; 5,186,347; 5,339,982; 5,542,670; 5,607,073; 5,706,973; and 5,890,621.
Standard sippy cups are not, however, completely spill-proof. It is common for small children, or people with limited dexterity, to knock over the cup or lose their grip and allow the cup to fall. It is also not uncommon for small children to simply turn the cup upside down to see what will happen. With standard sippy cups, liquid will flow from the small drinking hole in the spout. To help minimize these spills a one way hydrophobic diaphragm is often incorporated into the drinking hole. There are a number of prior art patents describing various diaphragms or membranes to prevent inadvertent liquid flow from sippy cups, including U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,890,620 and 6,568,557. The diaphragm prevents liquid from flowing through the drinking hole without some pressure, and the pressure is provided by the child during drinking. These cups typically include diaphragms with varying sized openings to allow different rates of flow. As the child ages he or she is able to drink with less suction, and larger diaphragms can be used.
One problem encountered by parents of small children, or care takers of the infirm, is the need for a variety of different sized cups. As a child ages, he or she is able to drink more liquid. so it is very common for a parent to purchase small cups for infants, and then as the child ages the parent needs to buy cups of increasing capacity. Typically a parent will begin with a 4 oz cup, then move up to a 6 oz cup, and finally an 8 oz cup. Typically each sippy cup comes with its own lid, and it is common for the lids from one size cup to not fit larger cups. Cups from different manufacturers virtually never fit the same lid, and it is often common for different sized cups from the same manufacture to have different sized lids. This means that parents (or other caregivers) are required to buy not only a new larger capacity cup, but also new lids for each cup. There is a need, therefore, for a cup system with varying size cups and a single spill proof lid that fits all sized cups.
It is very common for a parent to fill a sippy cup with a liquid for a child to drink and for the child to not finish the drink, and then for the parent to place the sippy cup into the refrigerator to prevent the contents of the cup from spoiling. This is also common in the case of the ill and elderly. It is not uncommon for a parent, or a caregiver, to have multiple sippy cups in the refrigerator at any one time. In those situations it is often difficult to determine when which cup was filled or last used. There is a need, therefore, for a system to indicate when a sippy cup has been filled. Most sippy cups are made from an opaque material, so it is often difficult to determine the contents of the sippy cup without removing the lid, which can cause spilling. There is a need, therefore, for a system to indicate the contents of the sippy cup.
The most common contents of a sippy cup are milk or juice, and milk and juice can quickly spoil particularly when it is hot outside. Parents will typically refrigerate the sippy cup after filling it with a drinkable liquid, or will fill it with the cooled liquid just before use. However if a child is outside on a warm day for any length of time there is always the possibility that the milk will become warm and may spoil. It is not uncommon to use ice cubes to cool juice, but the ice will dilute the juice, and it is not uncommon for children to refuse to drink diluted juice. There is the need, therefore, for a device to ensure the continued cooling of the sippy cup contents without the possibility of diluting the contents.
Most sippy cups are roughly cylindrical or have a beveled cylindrical or frustoconical shape, with a diameter of approximately three inches. While this is the size of a standard drinking cup and is quite easy for an adult to hold, it is often quite difficult for very small children to hold the standard sippy cup with one hand. It can also be quite difficult for the infirm or those with limited dexterity to hold a cup with one hand. Most children, and many infirm patients, hold the cup with two hands, but often attempt to hold the cup with one hand, causing frequent drops and spills. There are numerous prior art sippy cups with handles, but these handles are often fixedly attached and in only one position. There is the need, therefore for a removably attachable handle that can be attached with the handles extending either upward or downward.